Moldy Foods: To Eat or Not to Eat? Can you eat mold? What happens if you eat it? Why You Shouldn't Eat Moldy Foods

Often, vegetables that are moldy on one side turn out to be in the refrigerator, and bread is slightly covered with mold in the bread box. Is it possible to eat these products (at least from the side where the mold is not visible?)

Is a small amount of mold in the corner of a loaf really a sentence for him or just an annoying little thing that you shouldn’t pay special attention to?

Most of the mold is not visible, so throw away the whole piece

Marianne Gravely, lead specialist at the United States Department of Agriculture, says: “We do not recommend cutting off moldy pieces and eating bread - mold cells easily penetrate the entire product and even if you cannot see them, they are likely to be in the whole piece of bread ".

Mold is a small fungus - if you look under a microscope - easily penetrate the product and often it is simply not visible to the naked eye. Therefore, you can never be sure how deep the mold has settled into your loaf.

By the way, if the bread was immediately pre-sliced, this somewhat prevents the spread of mold throughout the piece, but again, it does not guarantee you safety. Therefore, just in case, feel free to throw away pieces of food with mold.

Some types of mold (like mushrooms) are perfectly edible, like Gorgonzola cheese, but moldy bread is not the best source of extra fiber.

Even if a piece of bread is only moldy on one side, throw it all away!

Don't smell mold

According to Gravely, people who eat mold can suffer from allergic reactions and respiratory problems. Even inhaling mold spores can be dangerous.

Just in case, sniffing mold is also not worth it - the pores will get into your lungs and can potentially cause problems.

What to throw away immediately and what not

The softer the food, the easier it is for mold to penetrate the entire piece of food. Therefore, bread, soft fruits, meat, jams that are moldy even from one edge - immediately go to the trash can.

Today.com gave examples of products to throw away when even a small amount of mold appears on them:

• hot dogs,
• bacon,
• casseroles,
• paste,
• yogurt,
• jams,
• cooked meat,
• bread,
• nut butter,
• any soft cheese
• leftover food.

Hard cheeses (and vegetables) - can be cleaned of mold and eat - this is normal.

However, the harder the food, the more likely it is that the mold can be removed and the food can continue to be eaten. Gravely says that hard cheeses and vegetables (like carrots, cabbage) and other harder foods can be cleaned of mold (with a good margin for possible mold spore penetration - Gravely writes about a 1-inch buffer) and eaten.

Also, if one of the strawberries in the package is moldy, you don’t need to throw out the whole pack, just make sure that the mold has not penetrated the rest of the berries.

By the way, if you often get mold, try cleaning the refrigerator more often - this also helps the products to be stored longer.

If a blue crust appears on the bread, the diligent hostess will carefully cut it off and put the rest on the table, confident that she is taking care of her family in this way. And if he notices a black fluff on a carrot, he will wash it thoroughly, clean it to redness, and put it in soup or salad. But is all mold on food good for you? How to distinguish the one that is edible from the one that can bring to the grave? News World learned about it.

NOT ALL MOLD IS A MEDICINE

Penicillin is an antibiotic, the appearance of which has already saved more than one million human lives. Does the same penicillin grow on vegetables, fruits, bread? By no means! “Antibiotics are made only from a certain type of penicillium fungus that inhibits the growth of harmful microorganisms. It should be remembered that penicillin is also a mycotoxin and it is also harmful to humans, just in the treatment of serious diseases, the benefits of its use outweigh the harm. In addition, natural penicillin is subjected to thorough processing and purification, and the dosage is strictly observed when prescribing, ”notes mycologist, candidate of biological sciences head of the Center for Mycological Expertise Evgeniya Bogomolova.

Evgenia Bogomolova is sure that almost all moldy foods should be thrown away, since mycelium permeates all bread or fruit, but this cannot be seen with the naked eye, and sometimes the taste of food does not change.

I agree with her and Alexander Baranov- Russian scientist candidate of biological sciences, has worked for many years at the Institute of Developmental Biology. N.K. Koltsov of the Russian Academy of Sciences. “Of course, mold is different. Bread, which is also called potato (it affects many foods), should not be eaten in any case! After eating such products, you can become seriously ill. Some develop body temperature, while others develop gastrointestinal symptoms (vomiting, diarrhea). Poisoning can be deep, proteinaceous - in such situations, fatal outcomes are possible, ”says Alexander Sergeevich.

Mold belongs to the fungi kingdom, which has over 100,000 organisms. And only about 100 organisms from this kingdom cause diseases in humans or animals. Mold grows from microscopic spores that are in the air. If the spore falls on something that it can profit from, then in the presence of temperature and humidity conditions, it germinates and forms a colony - a fluffy "cap" called mycelium. This is the visible part of the mold.

BUYER ADVICE

Pay attention to the release date and expiration date of the product.

When choosing cheese with white mold, smell it: real cheese smells like penicillin and may make you feel like a hospital.

If you choose the noble blue cheese, consider it carefully. In the section, mold streaks should be visible, but the channels through which it was introduced should not be evident. The cheese should be loose and soft, but not falling apart.

Blue cheeses, like any others, are very useful due to the high content of calcium and protein - even eggs and fish are not competitors. And recent studies have shown that with the regular use of cheeses with mold, the formation of melanin improves, which protects the skin from exposure to sunlight.

CHEESE WITH MOLD AND WITHOUT

Recently, there have been more and more statements that rumors about the dangers of mold that appears on food products are greatly exaggerated. Some experts complain that millions of tons of food are sent to landfill due to mold all over the world. British scientists call for an end to waste. For example, if white mold appeared on dry cheese, researchers from Foggy Albion say, you should not be afraid. You just need to carefully cut it with a knife, making sure that its particles do not remain on the knife or on the cheese. And after this simple procedure, the product is quite suitable for consumption.

But Alexander Baranov would beware of such hard cheese. “There are special varieties of cheeses with molds of industrial production - this is a completely different matter. They are not only harmless, but even useful. Molds give them a piquant taste, which is already loved not only by the French, but also by many Russians. Industrially produced blue or white cheese is safe, as long as it is consumed in reasonable amounts. But if mold has grown on Kostroma cheese, which, according to production conditions, is made without mold, I would throw it away. A desperate person can, of course, eat it. But I wouldn't risk it,” says our expert.

As for cheeses with industrial mold, they can also be harmful in large quantities (it is not recommended to consume more than 50 grams per day). The fungus found in mold produces an antibiotic that destroys beneficial bacteria in the gut. Result - a dysbacteriosis or at least disorder of an intestine. In addition, such cheeses are contraindicated for children and are strictly prohibited for pregnant women.

CRUST OF BREAD

Mold grows quickly. For example, if you see small black dots on bread, it is probably the sporangium (spore sacs) of mold from the genus Rhizopus. One sporangium can contain over 50,000 spores, and millions of new spores can form from one spore in just a few hours!

However, British scientists say that even moldy bread is a completely usable product. They explain that such mold does not go deep. “Cutting off the bread crust affected by mold in this case will not give anything,” Alexander Baranov is sure. - If the mold is visible on the surface, this indicates that the mycelium has already sprouted deep into. And no matter how much you cut off the crust, they will still be present in the product. The same goes for vegetables and fruits - if you notice a small speck of mold on the fruit, throw it away without regret. Especially if this mold is black.”

FOR WHAT PRODUCTS IS MOLD USED FOR

Blue cheeses: Roquefort, Camembert, Brie, Gorgonzola, Stilton. They owe their unique taste and aroma to certain types of Penicillium mold.

Delicious varieties of salami.

The finest wines, such as the French Château d'Yquem and Sauternes, as well as the Hungarian Tokay, are made from moldy grapes. As the Hungarian winemakers say, "noble rot makes noble wine." Such wines are very durable - they are stored for more than a hundred years.

Sake, soy sauce, and beer.

Species Aspergillus niger (black mold) is used for the production of citric acid.

WHAT IS GROWN...

The danger of black mold is beyond doubt even among loyal British researchers. Moldy vegetables, such as carrots, covered with sticky mucus, even they advise to throw away from sin. “Unfortunately, many housewives are used to not throwing out such vegetables: they will clean them thoroughly - and into the soup. Moreover, this is what unscrupulous sellers do in many stores: they rub the fruit with a cloth, clean it with a knife, then smear it with vegetable oil on top to give it a fresh presentation, and on the counter. Meanwhile, such mold can cause very serious poisoning,” Alexander Baranov warns.

Apples infected with fungi are very dangerous. There have been numerous reports of people getting severely poisoned by drinking tainted apple juice that contains the toxin patulin. Moldy nuts are also dangerous: they produce a deadly toxin that accumulates in the liver and causes cancer. It is known that black mold produces the most powerful carcinogen - aflatoxin (the same substance that causes cancer). In Asian countries, the toxin itself is believed to kill 20,000 people each year. Another curious fact. The Bantu people of Africa deliberately store food in such a way that they are covered with mold for the sake of taste. This nation most of all in the world suffers from liver cancer, they die before reaching the age of 40.

And yet, more often than not, mold does not pose a serious health threat, even when you smell it intensely. But it can cause problems in people who have allergies, sensitivities to chemicals, weakened immune systems, or lung problems, such as asthma; in infants and the elderly.

So, is there a universal recipe for how to distinguish healthy mold on a product from poisonous? Alexander Baranov advises to act simply: if the mold on the product is grown in industrial production, then it is safe. If she sat down on food at home, it’s better not to risk it.

But there are still exceptions. For example, mold is absolutely not terrible for jams and jams - mushrooms cannot multiply rapidly in a sweet environment. And the plaque that appeared on top in a jar of sweetness can simply be carefully removed and thrown away.

Arina Petrova

For reference:

Is any mold dangerous? No, only those types and strains of mold fungi that release mycotoxins. But, of course, it is impossible to determine by eye what exactly “settled” on the products, therefore it is recommended that you never eat those products that are at least slightly affected by mold.

There are a lot of mycotoxins: only more than 400 species are known. Moreover, one fungus can produce several types of toxins.

There are several reasons for classifying mycotoxins. For example, by the type of fungus, the effect on the body, by the type of toxin.

What foods can be affected by mycotoxins? And what does this threaten the person who will eat them?

Aflatoxins can "settle" in these products. The main types of aflatoxins: B1, B2, G, G2. Also hazardous to health are their metabolic products that appear in the body of animals that were fed contaminated food with aflatoxins. There are more of them: M, M2, B2a, G2a, GM1, P1, Q1. Aflatoxins can appear in various kinds of products as a result of improper storage.

This mycotoxin thrives especially in warm climates. It should be noted that it is not always possible to notice the colonies of this fungus, for example, on corn, especially if the infection is at an early stage. Only individual grains may be affected, or colonies may be in the spaces between them. This leads to the fact that contaminated products get into the feed of animals, harm them themselves, and then the people who eat the meat of these animals.

Molds that produce ochratoxin A usually appear as blue or green coatings on food, sometimes colonies look like clusters of thin filaments.

Like many other mycotoxins, ochratoxin A is not affected by temperature, so even heating or boiling a contaminated product will not neutralize its effect.

Kashaev Semyon

The purpose of my research work is to find out what mold is and where it comes from.

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Western Department of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Samara Region

District competition of research projects for junior schoolchildren "Gulliver"

SECTION "Nutrition and human health"

TITLE "Mold on food"

Completed:

Kashaev Semyon

2nd grade student

GBOU secondary school No. 17

Work manager:

Pecherskaya E.A. ,

primary school teacher

Syzran, 2016

Introduction

I love strawberries very much. In the summer, every year we go to the forest to collect it and make jam. And this year was no exception. In winter, my mother opened a jar of jam. On the surface of the jam, I saw an incomprehensible substance of a white-gray color. Mom threw the contents of the jar into the bucket and said that the jam was covered with mold. I asked my mother: “What is mold? Why can't we remove the mold and eat jam where there is none?" Mom hesitated to answer. And then I decided to find out for myself what mold is.

Starting this work, I asked myself the following questions: “What is mold? Why did mold form on jam? Is it possible to eat such jam, having removed the plaque, and is it not dangerous for health? There were many questions, of course. In my work, I tried to find the answer to them.

Target my research work to find out what mold is and where it comes from.

Object of study:mold on different foods.

Subject of study:conditions for its reproduction on products.

Hypothesis I assume that mold is a living organism that can appear on different foods and under different conditions.

Tasks:

1. Find out what mold is and how long it has been known to man;
2. Determine in practice the favorable conditions for its reproduction and appearance;
3. Examine the mold under a microscope;
4. Empirically determine the substances that slow down the process of mold;
5. Formulate conclusions based on the results of the research work.

Practical significance:know the conditions for storing food, taking care of your health.

Methods:

1. Questionnaire
2. Comparison
3. Observation
4. Experiment
5. Study of literature and Internet resources
6. Practical research
7. Experiment Data Processing
8. Analysis of the results

Main part.

I started my work with a survey of classmates on the topic "Mold"

(Appendix No. 1)

1. Where do you encounter mold in your life?

3. What harm do you think mold has to human health?

5. Do you know what mold is?

Here are the results I got after processing the questionnaires

1. Where do you encounter mold in your life?

In food 77%

At the entrance - 6%

At the cottage in the house - 10%

I did not notice it (a) - 7%

2. What do you usually do if you find a small piece of mold on a product?

I will throw away the entire product - 20%

Cut off the moldy part, eat the rest - 33%

I don't eat moldy foods, my mom keeps an eye on it - 47%

3. Do you think mold is harmful to human health?

Yes-48%

No - 32%

Don't know-20%

4. How to protect food from mold?

Wash-37%

Close or cover food - 28%

Don't know - 35%

5. No one could explain what mold is.

Findings from the survey:

Mold occurs in human life quite often. Only 7% of my classmates have never seen mold. It affects food, appears in a person's home. But sometimes we don't even notice it. Most people are unaware of the human health hazards that come from eating moldy foods when mold grows in human habitats. I decided that I needed to tell my friends more about the dangers of mold. But before I do that, I myself must study the biology of mold. This will help me expand my horizons, learn something new.

To answer the questions that arose, I visited the library, where I studied scientific and medical literature, turned to Internet resources, where I replenished my knowledge. After analyzing all the sources, I found out what mold is.

Mold (mold fungi) is a representative of a special kingdom of wildlife. Mold belongs to a class of fungi of which there are over 100,000 species, including downy mildew, cap mushrooms, rust fungi and yeasts. Molds belong to the class of oomycetes, marsupials and imperfect fungi. Mold has similarities and differences with both bacteria, plants and animals.

Mold is the common name for a fungus that occurs:

Moldy (grows on stone, concrete, paint),

Blue fungus (grows in the fiber of a tree),

Decay fungus (bacterial, white, brown rot growing on wood),

Yeast fungus (on food products).

Mold fungi are common almost everywhere. They are found both in a person's home and in the external environment.

Mold spreads through the air in the form of microscopic spores that fly through the air, looking for a suitable habitat (air temperature above 20 ° C, relative humidity - more than 90%). Once in a suitable environment, the spore at the required temperature and humidity level begins to germinate. It forms filament-like cells called hyphae.

When the hyphae are intertwined, a fluffy ball of threads is formed - mycelium. This is what we call mold. Externally, mold can also resemble dirt or stains, for example, when it forms on the walls in the bathroom between the tiles.

Blueing, greening of surfaces, peeling walls, terry or growing "beard", black dots on the ceiling indicate the presence of mold. Sometimes the mold takes the form of films, crusts, loose or powdery plaque on spoiled food, rotten leaves, on rotten wood.

Mold grows incredibly fast. In ordinary bread mold, small black dots can be distinguished - sporangia, in which spores are formed. One sporangium contains up to 50,000 spores, each of which is capable of reproducing hundreds of millions of new spores in just a few days! And if the conditions are favorable, mold will quickly appear on a book, shoes, or a fallen tree in the forest.

How does mold "eat"? Unlike humans and animals that first swallow food and then digest it, mold often does the opposite.

Since mold cannot move about in search of food, it must live in the food itself. In other words, mold is not able to produce its own food in the same way that green plants do.

Causes of mold. What affects mold growth?

From the above material, I remembered that the following conditions are considered the main reasons for the appearance of mold - temperature + 20 0 C and relative humidity above 95%. Poor air exchange supports the growth of fungi. In addition, mold loves dirt.

I assume that there may be several reasons for the appearance of mold in a jar of jam:

Such a problem could arise with poor qualitysterilizing jars or lids for jam. In this case, microbes were preserved on their surface, which began to develop over time, especially when conditions favorable for this occurred. In addition, if the lid was not tightly closed, microbes could get inside the jar and from the air, which also contributes to the development of mold.

Another reason for the appearancemold on jam could be insufficient cooking time. Mom was afraid to overcook the jam in order to preserve as many nutrients as possible.

Is it possible to cut mold from a moldy product and eat it?

Mold does not only live on the surface of the product. Only part of the mold is on the surface of the food - gray fur on forgotten pasta or fluffy green dots on bread, white dust on cheese, velvety coin-sized mugs on fruit. If a lot of mold has appeared on the surface of the food, it means that its roots have gone deep. In dangerous molds, poisonous substances are found in and around the roots. In some cases, toxic substances are distributed throughout the product.

Practical part

I decided in practice to check the information received in order to better study the mold and understand the reason for its occurrence.

I've done experiments.

Target my first experience: find out if mold is a living organism?

Equipment: a piece of boiled carrots, a box.

Experience Description : put a piece of boiled carrot in a disposable box and put it in a cupboard with the door tightly closed. I observed what was happening, recorded the results in a diary of observations and photographed. Daily observation is recorded in the table. (Appendix No. 2)

After 9 days of observation, I was able to make the first findings according to your research:

Mold has appeared and is growing - it means it is a living organism;

She grew up in complete darkness, for her nutrition does not need sunlight - so this is not a plant;

For 6 days of observation, I saw that a piece of carrot was wrinkled and decreased in size - the mold was fed by a piece of carrot. The mold did not swallow food like an animal, it cannot move - so it is not an animal.

In nature, there are such living organisms as bacteria. They have a different shape - spherical, shelf-shaped, spirals ...
I examined the mold under a microscope and saw that my mold resembled a fluff of small threads - so the mold is not bacteria.

Mold belongs to the kingdom of mushrooms, since the small threads are the mycelium, and the fluff is the body of the fungus.

Target my second experience: to identify the conditions for the development of mold fungi.
Equipment: 5 slices of bread, 4 disposable boxes, 3 plastic bags.
Description of the experience: cut 5 pieces from an ordinary loaf:
- piece number 1 put in a box;
- I wetted piece No. 2 with water and put it in a box;
- piece number 3 placed in a plastic bag and put in a box;
- I wetted piece No. 4 with water, placed it in a plastic bag and put it in a box;
- piece number 5 put in a bag and placed in the freezer.

Boxes with samples under No. 1, 2, 3, 4 were placed on a cabinet at room temperature (+ 22 0 WITH). The box with sample No. 5 was placed in a freezer with a temperature of -16 0 S. Observed what was happening, wrote down the results in a diary of observations and photographed. (Appendix No. 11)

Results of observations at room temperature and in the freezer:

After 9 days I was able to do findings according to your research:

I have received confirmation of the fact that molds appear and begin to grow rapidly if the conditions for their habitat are suitable: air temperature is above 20 ° C, relative humidity is more than 90%;

I found that mold is more comfortable in a damp, warm, dark environment. The higher the temperature, the faster the emergence and development. It turns out that dry air and cleanliness are the main

barriers to mold growth.

At low sub-zero temperatures, mold could not form (sample No. 5);

I remembered what the mold looked like in a jar of jam and compared it with the one that appeared on bread - they are different. This means that different types of mold develop on different foods;

My experiment was interrupted due to a very unpleasant pungent odor and a sore throat. This serves as evidence that mold can be hazardous to human health. My mom did the right thing by throwing away the entire contents of the jar and not the visible part of the mold. We usually treat mold with disdain. We cut off the affected area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe bread crust, remove the whitish top film from the jam and calmly eat what is left ... without even suspecting how dangerous it is. When you're dealing with a moldy object, don't stir it up. It is better to close it carefully and throw it away. The most important thing is not to inhale the spore material. If only part of the fruit is affected by the fungus, this means that the entire fruit is affected by the spores of the fungus.

From the literature, I learned that there are such substances - phytoncides, biologically active substances formed by plants that kill or inhibit the growth and development of bacteria, microscopic fungi. They are distinguished by different plants - onions, garlic, citrus fruits, as well as many houseplants.

So one more experiment is needed.

Target my third experience: to find out which of the plants prevents the formation of mold longer

Equipment: 4 slices of bread, 4 disposable plastic boxes, lemon, aloe leaf, garlic and onion.

Experience description: cut 4 pieces from an ordinary loaf:

For the next experiment, I put next to the bread: onion, garlic, lemon peel, aloe leaf. I put each object of study in a plastic bag. The results are listed in the table. Annex No. 15.

Conclusions to experience No. 3

Where there were phytoncidal parts of plants, mold appeared later.

Garlic, lemon and aloe leaf turned out to be the best plant to slow down the process of mold growth.

Getting acquainted with the material on this topic, I learned several ways to prevent the formation of mold on food.

1. In order not to transfer products, throwing them away due to the formation of mold, you need to take care that it does not appear on them at all. Fruits, vegetables, dairy products, bakery products should be bought fresh. Don't buy them in large quantities, use them as soon as possible.
2. Keep fruits and vegetables, meat and fish in the refrigerator
3. After opening the juice pack, use the juice within 2 days.
4. Do not eat food damaged by mold
5. Bakery products, spices, nuts should be stored in a cool and dry place.
6. Store bread in wooden bread boxes. Wipe the bread box regularly with water, adding a little vinegar.
7. When buying products, pay attention to their shelf life and appearance.
8. If you see mold on any product, get rid of it or these products as soon as possible,after wrapping them or placing them in a small plastic bag. Dispose of moldy food only in closable waste containers.

Conclusion

Every year the world becomes more defenseless against microbes and molds. Invisible to the human eye, they are able to multiply, infecting healthy areas of food.

Through my work, I learned a lot about mold and fungi.

I learned and received confirmation that mold fungi develop in a room with high humidity and a room temperature of 20 - 30 degrees Celsius. Therefore, it is necessary to observe measures for the proper storage of products.

At the beginning of my research, I conducted a survey among my classmates and realized that they knew very little about mold. At the lesson of the world around me, I told the children about my observations and conclusions and presented them with a wall newspaper, which will help them act correctly when mold is detected and prevent its occurrence.

"About mold"

Covered vegetables and bread
Cakes of some incomprehensible
Nonsense. Then the dark ones grew
Sporangia on a stalk, let
If it didn't end in disaster.
Mold plaque is insidious and dangerous
And she looks terrible!

Literature

1. "The Great Soviet Encyclopedia" Book: edited by A.M. Prokhorov (Publisher: "Soviet Encyclopedia" 1975; 3rd edition; Volume 20).

2. Big encyclopedia of nature. Mushrooms (Publisher: Mir knigi LLC, 2005. Volume 8).

3. “Everything about everything. Popular encyclopedia for children "Book: edited by G.P. Shalaev (Publisher: AST-LTD. Moscow 1998; Volumes 6 and 10).

4. http://www.livt.net/ "Living beings" Electronic illustrated encyclopedia.

5. http://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki

6. http://plesene.net/o_plesene/obrazovaniepleseni/mold structure

7. http://fishki.net/comment.php?id=75816– macro photos of mold

8. http://www.stihi.ru/2014/04/22/8166 - poem "About mold"

9. http://www.lab-biomed.ru/mold - microbiological and chemical analysis

10. http://www.poedim.ru/pp - food rules.

Appendix

No. 1. Questioning classmates

Results of experiment No. 1.

No. 3. First experience. Start. No. 4. Experience No. 1. Day two

No. 5. Experience number 1. Day three.

No. 6. Experience No. 1. Day four. Looking at mold under a microscope

No. 7. Experience No. 1. Day five.

The results of mold growth are observed under a microscope.

No. 8. Experience number 1. Day six.

No. 9. Experience number 1. Day seven. Photabout mold under a microscope.

No. 10. Mold under a microscope.

No. 11. Results of experiment No. 2.

No. 12. Experience number 2. The first day. Start.

No. 13. Experience number 2. Day three.

sample no. 3

Bread + aloe leaf

sample no. 4

1 day

2 day

Without changes

Without changes

Without changes

Without changes

3 day

The piece remained soft, mold did not appear

The piece began to stale, but the mold did not appear

The piece began to stale, but the mold did not appear

Day 4

Without changes

Without changes

Without changes

Without changes

Day 5

Without changes

Without changes

Without changes

Without changes

Day 6

The bread is soft, a small speck of white has appeared

The bread is stale, the mold has not appeared

The bread is stale, the mold has not appeared

Day 7

Bread is soft, mold is growing

E appeared in different parts of the piece

Without changes

Without changes

Without changes

Day 8

The mold takes on a greenish color, but on the very first spot that appears

Without changes

Without changes

Without changes

Day 9

Green spots of mold have increased, a piece of loaf has become slightly damp

The piece is stale, no mold found

The piece is stale, no mold found

Day 10

Experience interrupted

No. 16. Experience number 3. Day one. The beginning of the experience.

No. 17. Experience No. 3. Day ten. Experience completed.

We are all familiar with such an unpleasant phenomenon as mold. Wherever it appears - on the wall or on the ceiling in the bathroom from dampness, on bread that seems to be stored in a completely dry bread box or on food in the refrigerator, mold always causes the most negative emotions. Firstly, everything that it covers looks very unaesthetic, and secondly, sometimes one glance at it takes annoyance - well, how so, I bought cheese / bread / pizza just a couple of days ago, and they are already “smelly” and covered with "marble" crust?!

Frustrated and to some extent even offended, we never think about where this very mold comes from and how it appears on products in general. Although the fact that her appearance clearly indicates food spoilage, everyone probably knows. Let's try to figure out why products become moldy, what precedes the formation of mold and how can this be avoided?

First of all, you need to find out what mold is. So, the isolated type of microscopic (several billion spores can form on one small piece of bread!) Mushrooms that grow on the surface of organic products is called. For the formation, as well as the rapid reproduction of these fungi, appropriate temperature conditions are needed, in addition, they develop in conditions of high humidity. For example, quite favorable conditions for the formation of microscopic fungi on food can be called an ordinary kitchen, where the temperature of humid (!) Air varies between 20-30 degrees Celsius. But it happens that mushrooms form even at extremely low temperatures, this can be facilitated not only by high, but by very high humidity!

A mold fungus is formed as a result of chemical decay - the actual death of the organism, both plant and animal.

So, as we said above, the impetus for the formation of mold is the death of the body. Contribute to further development - appropriate conditions. Everything, as you know, has a shelf life - bread, while maintaining its taste and nutritional qualities, can be stored for only a few days, natural dairy products - no more than a day, or even less. There are products that keep their freshness much longer, but their shelf life is limited. If during this period they are in a warm room with high humidity, the process of mold formation is inevitable. In order for food to stay fresh longer, it needs to be stored properly, limiting its stay in the heat and controlling the level of humidity in storage areas, even in the refrigerator!

In conclusion, it is imperative to say about the dangers of mold - in no case should you eat products on which it was formed, even if you cut off the place of mold formation and it seems to you that under this cut the product remained fresh and edible. Mold fungi have very deep roots that you cannot see with the naked eye: it seems to you that there is no mold, but it actually completely “captured” the product and develops there due to its dead cells. And yes - if you still really want to leave the product on the surface of which you found mold, do not forget to think again that the mold fungus is formed only on those products in the cells of which the process of chemical decomposition is already underway, i.e. they have deteriorated. Having said so much about the harmfulness of these fungi and their annoying "seizure" of products, it would not be fair not to note that mold can be useful - for example, the well-known Penicillin. At one time, it became a panacea for many diseases. You will not grow this drug on bread or in a jar of jam. You can create such a "mold" only in the laboratory.